A fifth case of coronavirus has been reported from the state of Karnataka, with a 26-year-old man who has travel history to Greece testing positive for the disease on Thursday. The man who is a resident of Mumbai came from Greece to Mumbai on March 6.
Later, he travelled from Mumbai to Bengaluru on March 8 in an Indigo flight. On March 9, he went to his office. Though there are 154 employees in the office, he was in close contact with only 4 people in office. His brother, who he was living with in Bengaluru, is also under observation.
"We are gathering details about copassengers and contacting them and telling them to be under home isolation," Karnataka Medical Education Minister Sudhakar said in a press conference on Thursday evening.
A cab he travelled in Bengaluru has also been traced. The auto driver and his three family members are also under observation. In total 17 people who come into contact directly and indirectly with him, officials said.
"The patient is admitted and isolated at the hospital and is stable. All his primary contacts have been traced and are asymptomatic. Home quarantine has been advised and being followed-up,” the Karnataka government note stated.
The government added that all primary contacts of the four people who previously tested positive are under surveillance and no symptomatic cases have been reported.
"The man had went on honeymoon to Greece with his wife on February 23 and he had returned to Bengaluru on March 8. Initially both of them had landed in Mumbai on March 6," Sudhakar reiterated.
He added, "He had felt sick in office on March 9 and had got admitted to Jayanagar Government Hospital isolation ward on March 10."
The minister added that health officials in Mumbai and Agra had been informed where his wife had gone subsequently.
The government on Thursday added that in the state, 1,220 persons have been identified for observation out of whom 292 persons have completed 28 days of observation. 906 people are continuing home quarantine and a total of 18 people are admitted at selected isolation facilities.
TIll date, 1,01,942 passengers who have arrived in Karnataka. 69,998 passengers have been screened at Kempegowda International Airport in Bengaluru and 26,557 passengers have been screened at Mangalore International airport–passengers. 5,387 passengers have been screened at Mangalore and Karwar seaports.
This brings the total number of cases in India to 75, with Andhra reporting its first case of coronavirus on Thursday as well. The World Health Organisation on Wednesday evening categorised COVID-19 as a ‘pandemic,’ following which India tightened travel rules for those coming from coronavirus-affected countries to India. India suspended all visas except for a few categories such as diplomatic and employment, till April 15. US President has also barred travellers from Europe, except for Britain, to travel into the USA. The number of cases across the world have crossed 1,18,000 and over 4,200 deaths have been reported due to coronavirus.